Connor Bedard said the Chicago Blackhawks weren’t going to be pushed around this season. That has appeared to hold true.

The star center found himself in almost every scuffle and did his part in initiating them in the Hawks home opener against the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night at the United Center.

He took a hard left hand from Mike Matheson with a smug look on his face. In the second period, Bedard bumped into the Canadiens’ Ivan Demidov, starting another dustup. Later, Bedard and Josh Anderson chirped at each other near center ice, exchanging some choice words.

Now, it’s about figuring out the balance between intensity and discipline.

The Hawks lost 3-2 in their third close battle in as many games, and this one was a heartbreaker: The Canadiens’ Kaiden Guhle tipped the puck in

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